Food can be one of the biggest expenses after housing.  This is especially true if law school (job or family) takes up most of your time (check) and you are not very good at cooking (check).  My twin goal every month is to keep my food expenses low and try to spend the least amount of time in the kitchen.  I want things that are simple to cook, relatively healthy and filling.

 You know my penchant for free food usually in the form of free sandwiches, free chipotle burritos and free pizza from school.  But, a girl can’t keep living on just the free stuff.  To keep my food costs down and my tummy full, there are a few items that I routinely eat:

 Rice

Basmati rice is my favorite kind of rice due to its unique texture and because it isn’t sticky.  It is also super simple and easy to make.  I cook white basmati rice in a rice cooker.  This will usually take 15-20 minutes.  I will make more than I need so I will have rice to eat for a few days.  You can pair rice as a side to almost anything.  Also basmati rice packs a good nutritional punch because it is a good source of iron, selenium, thiamine, and niacin. 

Spaghetti/pasta

I have a lot of spaghetti, pasta and macaroni in my cupboards because it is cheap and filling.  I usually like to make spaghetti and meat balls with melted cheese on top or have it with just the sauce.  Pasta is an excellent complex carbohydrate with almost no fat. 

 Eggs

I love eggs.  They are such a great source of cheap protein, and if you throw away a few of the egg yolks then you can lower the fat content as well.  The only downside with eggs would be the sodium content.  I like to make French toast or scrambled eggs for breakfast and sandwiches for lunch. 

 Frozen fish

This may be the most expensive item on the list compared to everything else.  I usually like to get a large bag of frozen salmon and tilapia from Sam’s Club when I am home and this usually lasts me the whole semester.  The fish pairs nicely with the rice.  Salmon is high in omega-3’s and tastes great without the addition of any special sauces.  While tilapia is lower in omega-3’s than salmon, it is a fish that matures fast so it has lower levels of mercury. 

 Bread

 I eat a lot of bread because I can easily make sandwiches.  Sandwiches are nice and compact for someone like me who is always on the go with 50 lbs of books.  Whenever I go home I always get a loaf of homemade bread.  I am thinking about bringing back more than one loaf after Christmas because I heard you can easily freeze bread. 

 So, there you have it.  What are some cheap and healthy eat’s that are your fridge or pantry MVP’s?